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Alexis Dayers
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Baller on a Budget: Top 10 under $10

Halloween is right around the corner and then Thanksgiving. As soon as you know it, you are scurrying around to find deals for holiday gift exchange. If you are like me, you need to start budgeting now! That’s why I rely on a few of my favorite drugstore/budget staples to keep my wallet in one piece, I also shop my current cosmetic stash to keep me from the Sephora counters!

In no particular order, I give my Top 10 under $10:

10 under $10

 

1. Batiste dry shampoo, Blush scent. Price varies per store that carries the brand. I bought mine at Walgreens where the full size bottle (6.73 fl) retails for $8.29/USD and the On the Go purse sized version (1.6 fl) retails for $3.99/USD. I love this brand because it sops up the sweat and grease that my have resulted from heavy duty lunch time boot camp workout sessions. Shake vigorously and do not spray directly in the roots. Spray about inches away from scalp. If you have dark hair like me, you may experience some white residue but it quickly dissipates once you rake your fingers through your hair. My hair feels clean and it leaves a fresh floral scent to my hair. I have the purse sized version to keep in my bag at all times.

2. Aveeno Continuos Sun Block, SPF 30. Sadly, this has been discontinued. I appologize for the oversight. I loved this moisturizer because it hydrated nicely, was unscented and never made me break out since I layered this on top of my serum and under another moisturizer and primer. It retailed for 9.99/USD. Again, apologies for the oversight. I am currently using Neutrogena Clean Face Sunscreen Lotion, SPF 30. I like this one but it does have that slight sunscreen scent and falls over the $10 price point.

3. Kiehl’s Lip Balm #1. I have written about my love for this lip balm. It has yet to fail me. I love coating my lips with a thick layer before going to bed and right after a shower. I wake up with soft lips and they are ready to be coated with lipstick and gloss for the rest of the day. The unscented version retails for $7/USD and the scented (what I always use) goes for $9/USD. Cranberry is a great scent for the holiday season. My go-to’s are coconut and pear.

4. Neutrogena Oil-Free Eye Makeup Remover. I have tried the store brand versions,as well as pricey department store removers, and it still doesn’t hold a candle to the Neutrogena formula but it comes very close! This unscented liquid takes off my stubborn eye liners and mascara. I don’t use waterproof formulas so I can’t honestly attest to ease of removing waterproof mascaras. It does feel a bit oily, even after a good shake but it really does the job for me just as good if not better than a pricier version. I have tried the wipes and I still prefer the liquid version with a good ol’ cotton ball. This doesn’t sting my eyes, nor do I have to pull or tug at my delicate eye area to remove my eye makeup. It also dissolves my lipstick just as easily. This retails for $7.99/USD (5.5 fl oz).

5. Red Cherry false eye lashes. Fake lashes really run the gamut from $1.99 at a dollar store to over $25 for fancy 100% mink lashes. If you aren’t in the market for falsies that Beyonce and JLo sport then check out Red Cherry falsies. They are made of human hair and hold up really well. You can get them in a pack  of 3 through Amazon under $6/USD and for you can find them sold by itself for about $2.19/USD. Um….sold! I learned about these from a friend that’s a freelance makeup artist. She does photo shoots and weddings galore - she swears by these. Okay…I’m really sold! I used a pair for three wearings. I could stretch it for a fourth time but I think I’ll buy a new pair and for that price, I don’t feel guilty! The only thing I hate is that I have never seen these in a store, you have to order them online. I got mine as a gift but I’m planning to order a set through Amazon.

6. Clear Eyes eye drops. Yes, eye drops are part of my beauty arsenal. Not glamorous but the quickest way to wake up my eyes at 5:45 AM when I get out of my shower and start getting ready for work. I suffer from yearlong allergies, sucks, and this helps relieve itchy, red eyes. Nothing worse than red zombie eyes to compete with your safe for work, smoky eyes! This retails for $6.99/USD. I always make sure I have this on my bathroom counter and also in my travel makeup pouch.

7. Wet n’Wild Color Icon Collection single eye shadow, Nutty. This has great buttery, softness to the touch. The biggest surprise is the pigment and staying power - full eight hours on top of a good lid primer. Nutty is a beautiful, soft satin finish taupe. It’s a great one pan wonder for the mornings when you barely have time to coat your lashes with a layer of mascara. This beautiful neutral shadow retails for $1.99/USD. Yes, you need this!

8. Essie Nail Polish. I really don’t need to go into the details of how awesome this polish is. I can’t really pick my favorite shade, that’s a bit Sophie’s Choice cruel but I will say there’s no nude pink shade like Mademoiselle for me!

9. Revlon Colorburst Lip Gloss. Easily my favorite brand (drugstore) when it comes to gloss. This packs great amount of pigment, light sweet scent and keeps my lips soft. I usually stock up on these when they go on sale at Walgreens or Target. I’ll be sporting Bordeaux soon since I am beginning to feel the sharp chill of winter coming soon. Yes, I know that was very Game of Thrones of me. Retails for $7.99/USD.

10. L’Oreal Voluminous Smoldering Eye liner. I recently reviewed this liner and I still stand by it. I like that the grey I own is a deep charcoal and not a light grey. It smudges beautifully and stays on pretty impressively, especially along my bottom water lines. It comes off easily with a good makeup remover (see above). I need to own it in black. Retails for $9.49/USD.

These aren’t earth shattering products but they are part of arsenal that I replenish often. I know I sometimes report on pricey cosmetic and skincare but honestly I’m a high-low kinda of gal!

What are some of your favorite items under $10? I love to learn more about cost efficient products that I often miss.

 

Prices varies depending on the individual stores that sells these items.

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LiaDelFresco
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Sanrio x Earth Therapeutics Hello Kitty Spa Collection

Sanrio x Earth Therapeutics Hello Kitty Spa Collection 03

There’s nothing like a spa day with your favorite gal pals. Ahh, hello rest, relaxation…and Hello Kitty. Sanrio has teamed up with Earth Therapeutics to release a full collection of Hello Kitty spa products. The exclusive collection includes a neck pillow ($20), ergonomic sleep mask ($12), exfoliating body sponge ($7), pedicure tool ($7) and two aromatherapy kits. The kits will be sold exclusively at ULTA Beauty Stores and the other individual relaxation products which will be available at Kohl’s, Sanrio.com, EarthTherapeutics.com, and other special retailers in November.

Image Layouts: C_Rocka

Sanrio x Earth Therapeutics Hello Kitty Spa Collection 02

Sanrio x Earth Therapeutics Hello Kitty Spa Collection 01

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Alexis Dayers
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NARS/Guy Bourdin Holiday 2013 Preview

The latest Holiday collaboration is a no-brainer: NARS - Guy Bourdin. If you look at most NARS ads, with ultra glamazons saturated in color and sensuality, you would immediately see influences from a Bourdin layout in French Vogue, circa 1977.

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NARS Holiday 2013 Campaign

This Holiday season, Nars will be rolling out 16 new, limited edition eye shadows, lipsticks, blush and nail polishes. The eye shadows and lipstick are a little different. To really fit the Bourdin mold, shadows are reformulated with high-pearl and high-shine finish and lipsticks are super-glossy.  Both deliver high impact “saturated, cinematic Bourdin look.”

Here’s a sneak peek of the collection that will debut in Nars boutiques and Nars.com on Oct. 15 before debuting at Sephora and department stores on Nov. 1.

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Prices range from $19/USD - $29/USD

On the topic of Holiday, you can expect a myriad of gift options. They range from polish collections, shadow/blush palettes, Larger than Life Eyeliner Coffrett, to cheeky cosmetic pouches.

And I just love the packaging:

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This set contains two mini velvet lip pencils and two lipsticks contained in a lacquered lip case. My problem is figuring out which one to keep and which ones to give out this Christmas.

Last year’s Andy Warhol collaboration gave us an urban downtown art-house feel so this season we are transported back to the glossy, high fashion disco days of Regine’s in Paris. The holidays just can’t come any sooner.

The gifting collection consists of eight sets. They will be distributed between Nars.com, Nars boutiques, Sephora and fine department stores. Prices range from $35/USD - $75/USD.

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Alexis Dayers
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Marc Jacobs Beauty - Highliner Pencil Review

I am a huge fan of Marc Jacobs. I own a few Marc by Marc Jacobs items because it’s pretty wallet friendly compared to his signature line. The Marc Jacobs woman is an effortlessly cool.  Polished but just a little rough, mussed up around the edges - this is my style in a nutshell. I just wish I could afford more Marc Jacobs. Well, my wish is coming true because early this fall, he released his self-titled beauty line.

I’m not going to review the entire collection, just the one item I picked up and has been used in my current rotation of beauty items.

The Highliner pencil:

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I almost picked up basic black but I wanted something different, perhaps a shade that could also double as a lid shade. So I went with this beautiful, shimmery bronze, Ro(cocoa).

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Honestly, I was a little hesitant because it reminded me of a bronzer liner I currently own that is near and dear to my heart - Urban Decay’s 24/7 Waterproof Liquid Liner in Smog, a deep brown with shimmer.

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Ro(cocoa) on the left and Smog on right - I’m so glad I was wrong. Ro(cocoa) is more copper on my skin, whereas Smog is a deep brown bronze.

When trying as a lid base, I drew thick lines on my top lash lines and then smudged the color right below my orbital bone. Please pay no attention to the stray hair on my face.

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I then drew another line right along my top and bottom lash lines. I also used an eye pencil brush to soften and smudge from mid to outer bottom corner. Finish up with layers of black mascara and you can call it a day. It’s perfect for weekends, simple eye looks that won’t compete with bright lips or for morning when you hit the snooze button just one too many times.

But being the beauty junkie I am, I added on:

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I layered a light golden beige on top, a matte neutral brown in the crease and a creamy bisque as my highlight. This is a great component for a smoky bronze eye look. I also love wearing this on my bottom water line when wearing black liner on top lash lines.

When wearing this on top of a good lid primer, I get a full eight hours and surprisingly, up to four hours on my bottom water lines. I should preface this by mentioning that I do not have oily lids. If you do, you make experience some product movement. I love this liner - the formula is smooth like a traditional potted gel liner and packaged in a slim twist top pencil. It’s very light weight and can be easily carried in your pocket or a slim wristlet.

Bonus points - it comes with it’s own sharpener:

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The Highliner comes in six shades and I’m pretty sure more to come in the very near future. Next on my “to-try” list are the blushes,  lip lacquer glosses and the lip gel lipsticks. If my lips take well to MJ lip product formulas then my wallet will be very fearful.

Marc Jacobs Beauty is exclusively found at Sephora and Marc Jacobs’ boutiques.

Product price range - $18 - $59/USD.

Highliner pencil, $25/USD

 

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Alexis Dayers
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Shiseido Fall 2013 Review

Hey Beauty Fans,

This week I’ll be sharing my favorite fall offerings from a brand that I don’t always give love to, but I’m looking to change that with just the few items I picked this season.

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I am a fan of the Perfect Rouge Lipstick for it’s instant moisture once applied to my lips, due to it’s super hydro-wrap vitalizing DE and hyaluronic acid. Pigment is rich and luxurious due to the red illuminating pearl also found in the formula, it delivers vivid color while reflecting light for a lustrous, pumped finish.

It’s unscented and doesn’t make my lips dry or itch. It’s earned a place on my holy grails of lipstick brands. Due to my hyper-sensitive lips, this is a relatively short list. Shiseido currently added five new shades to their existing lineup of twenty.

I went with a work friendly brownish red shade, Harmony (RD 750):

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I find this to be a very office friendly color or perhaps the perfect compliment to smoky charcoal or chocolate eye looks. I would also use a soft peach or rose blush shade. I know this looks like a light coral but it is really is a light russet shade in naturally lighting.

I wanted to do something completely opposite to Harmony - Showgirl (RD 553):

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Showgirl is described as a deep striking red - that’s true but it’s a bit of a tomato red on me. This is your red to compliment a nude lid marked with a strong liquid (or gel) eye liner on the top lash lines, topped with lots of black mascara or a strip of false lashes. Or for a more fresh and innocent look, I would pair this red lips with lightly a light touch of gold lids to brighten the eyes and lots of black mascara for flirty definition.

I get a decent wear time of about three hours before I need to refresh the color. It settles nicely and comfortably. I can’t wait to incorporate these shades into my color repertoire.

I’ve never tried the new Shiseido shadows. I probably stole a few swipes from my mother’s shadow duos from the late 80’s, when she was out and I was bored. I don’t remember the shadows being this soft to the touch on my fingertips.

It’s gets it buttery soft texture from these components:  Satin smooth pearl (provides smooth finish), Micromatic color (reflects light, creating vivid, translucent colors), Super Hydro-wrap Vitalizing DE  (improves dryness to give eyes a moisturized look all-day), and dual optimizing powder (delivers true color and natural sheen for all-day wear).  Shiseido has added three new shades to their existing lineup of twelve.

After a full day wear, I can attest that it does give a very soft look. If you are use to high impact colors, this may not be for you. You know how much I love strong colors on my lids but for days that I want some quiet soft shades, I’ll turn to this. These shadows are perfect for the office, weekends and any time you are craving a soft wash of color that won’t clash with your strong pout.

I went with Into the Woods (BR 214)

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A dark, warm amber and gold paired with a cool lilac - reminiscent to a burned tree trunk. I really like the unexpected coolness from the lilac. I added the lilac to the inner corners of my eyes to brighten and make my eyes look a little bit bigger. I also like this color right under the highest arch of my brows added polish. I also used a deep bronze pencil along my bottom waterline.

I am pleased with my picks and hope to add more to my collection in the near future.

Perfect Rouge - $25/USD

Luminizing Satin Eye Color Trio - $33/USD

The new fall collection is available now online (www.shiseido.com) and at all stores that carry the Shiseido brands.

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